"Where am I?"
Wendy opened her bleary eyes.
The scenery was completely different from what she remembered. She was sleeping in a strange bag, covered by a thin blanket and a man was leaning against a nearby tree, fast asleep.
"You're awake?"
Hearing the noise, Raizel woke up and looked at her.
"Who are you? Where is Grandeeney?" Wendy sat up in the sleeping bag.
She couldn't sense Grandeeney's smell anywhere.
She looked around frantically.
Raizel's lips curved into a gentle smile. "My name is Raizel. I saw you sleeping here alone last night. As for the 'Grandeeney' you mentioned... I didn't see anyone. You were alone the whole time."
"I am Wendy Marvell," she said, her voice small. "Grandeeney isn't a person. She is a Dragon."
After introducing herself, Wendy closed her eyes and shook her head, trying to sense the dragon again.
"Then I definitely didn't see her," Raizel said, frowning slightly. "I haven't seen any dragons."
"I need to find Grandeeney!" Wendy's brow furrowed, and her voice trembled.
She had never been away from Grandeeney's side before.
She was terrified.
"I'll help you look," Raizel offered.
He knew they wouldn't find the dragon, but if he didn't let Wendy search, she would never accept it.
...
"Grandeeney! Grandeeney!"
Wendy kept calling out Grandeeney name as she walked through the forest and Raizel followed her patiently for the entire day.
As the hours passed, her calls grew softer. Her throat was dry from thirst, and the growing fear in her heart was silencing her voice.
"How about I help you call for her? But you need to eat something first," Raizel sighed, looking at the small girl who hadn't eaten or drunk anything all day.
"Really?" Wendy's eyes welled up with tears.
She had wanted to cry for a while, but she was trying to be brave in front of this stranger.
She wiped her eyes with her small hands.
"Eat first, then we search."
Raizel took food and water from his backpack and handed them to her.
"Mm." Wendy took the food.
She sat on a rock and began to eat. She was starving, but the worry for her mother made it hard to swallow.
Cough, cough.
She ate too quickly and choked a little.
Raizel unscrewed the water bottle cap and handed it to her, gently patting her back with his other hand.
"Slow down. Eat slowly."
Raizel ate a little too.
He hadn't eaten all day either, though he could handle the hunger much better than a five-year-old.
"So, Grandeeney is a dragon? We haven't seen dragons in a long time," Raizel said, using the break to talk to her.
"Yes. Grandeeney is a dragon. She is very big, but very gentle," Wendy said, spreading her arms wide and standing on her tiptoes to show just how big she was.
"In that case, it should be easier to find her from above," Raizel said, pointing a finger toward the sky.
"Take Over: Dynasmon."
Raizel transformed.
He became a white-armored draconic warrior with massive wings.
He adjusted his size slightly so his hand was large enough for Wendy to sit on comfortably.
"Wendy, sit here. We'll fly up to look." Raizel crouched down and placed his open palm on the ground.
Wendy looked up at the white armor.
She felt curious.
After spending the day with him, she wasn't afraid of Raizel anymore, so she climbed onto his hand.
"Hold on tight."
Raizel flapped his wings and took off. Wendy wrapped her arms around one of Dynasmon's armored claws to steady herself.
This wasn't Wendy's first time flying.
Grandeeney used to fly with her often, so she wasn't scared. Instead, she kept scanning the sky and the ground, occasionally calling out her mother's name.
But the vast sky swallowed her voice.
Raizel flew her around the area until nightfall, when the darkness made it impossible to see.
"It's too late today. Let's continue tomorrow," Raizel said as he set Wendy down and turned back to human form.
"Mm," Wendy nodded.
By now, she trusted Raizel completely.
He had stayed with her, fed her, and flown her around for hours. If he was a bad person, he would have done something by now.
...
Raizel had brought several days' worth of food, knowing Wendy wouldn't give up easily.
For seven days, Raizel flew Wendy in every direction.
He flew slowly so she could check every mountain and valley. They even crossed the borders of several nearby countries during their search.
Unbeknownst to Raizel, Grandeeney had been observing them from within Wendy.
Seeing that Raizel meant Wendy no harm and was protecting her, the Dragon chose not to reveal herself.
On the seventh day, Raizel decided to head back toward Magnolia.
Wendy had grown sadder and quieter with each passing day.
"Wendy, I have an idea," Raizel said softly.
Wendy was hugging her knees by the campfire, staring blankly into the flames.
Hearing his voice, she turned to look at him.
"Join our guild. Become a famous Mage. Maybe if your name becomes well-known across the continent, Grandeeney will hear it and come find you herself."
"Guild? What's that?" Wendy's eyes regained a little sparkle at the mention of Grandeeney.
"It's where Mages gather. We take on jobs, help people, and grow strong. I'm a mage too."
Raizel extended his left hand toward the fire.
The orange light illuminated the Fairy Tail mark on the back of his hand.
"This is our Guild's crest. All members get this mark. My guild, Fairy Tail, is quite famous."
He pointed into the darkness. "Through the forest, in that direction, there is a town called Magnolia. That is where our guild is."
"Guild? Fairy Tail?" Wendy tilted her head.
She had never heard of these things before.
"Yes. How about joining us?" Raizel gave her a gentle, big-brotherly smile.
"You won't... abandon me?" Wendy asked quietly.
She grabbed his hand. She had nowhere else to go!
"Of course not. Join our guild, and we'll keep looking for Grandeeney together. How does that sound?"
"Okay," Wendy nodded, her eyes crinkling into a small smile.
...
Since it was already late, Raizel decided to take Wendy to the guild the next morning.
For tonight, he flew her back to his house.
"The lights are on?"
It was past nine o'clock, and Raizel could see the warm glow of his windows from the sky.
Ultear and the others had keys to his place—Ultear kept many books there, and Erza stored some of her weapons in his spare room.
Raizel landed in the courtyard and set Wendy down.
Kagura was practicing with Archenemy in the yard.
Hearing the noise, Erza and Ultear immediately rushed out of the house.
"You disappeared for days without a word! This is what you meant by 'don't worry'?!"
Ultear glared at Raizel with her hands on her hips.
She was angry—mostly because she had been worried.
"Who is she?"
Erza and Kagura ignored the scolding. They looked at the small child clinging to Raizel's leg.
There was no suspicion of a cliché "secret daughter" scenario.
They had been with Raizel constantly for three years, and Wendy didn't look like a baby.
Plus, her blue hair looked nothing like Raizel.
Raizel crouched down and gently patted Wendy's head to calm her down. She was trembling slightly, frightened by Ultear's sharp tone.
"This is Wendy Marvell. She's five years old," Raizel explained softly. "She got separated from her mother, Grandeeney. I helped her search for her mother for seven days, but we couldn't find her... so I brought her home. Wendy, say hello to everyone."
"I... I'm Wendy," she whispered, hiding behind Raizel's leg.
Ultear's expression softened instantly. She realized her yelling had scared the poor child.
She bent down, her voice becoming gentle and sweet. "Hello, Wendy. I'm Ultear. You can call me Big Sister Ultear."
She had always regretted that Kagura refused to call her "Big Sister," so she was delighted to have someone younger around to call her one.
Erza and Kagura approached too.
"Hello, Wendy. I'm Erza."
Kagura walked over, holding the orange cat. "I'm Kagura. And this is Oyen."
"Meow~"
Wendy blinked, looking at the kind faces and the fluffy cat.
Her grip on Raizel's leg began loosened just a little.